Multicolor sheet fed rotary printing machine



Aug. 3, 1965 F. Moos MULTICOLOR SHEET FED ROTARY PRINTING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 15, 1963 Httornel Aug. 3, 1965 F. Moos 3,193,112

MULTICOLOR SHEET FED ROTARY PRINTING MACHINE Filed Sept. 15, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Mum/roe Franz (00$ 3 Ea/1,5 'Rofldz Qttomes United States Patent 3,198,112 MULTICOLOR SHEET FED ROTARY PRINTING MACHINE Franz Moos, Heidelberg, Germany, assignor to Schnellpressenfabrik Frankenthal Albert & Cie. Aktiengesellschaft, Frankenthal, Ptalz, Germany Filed Sept. 13, 1963, Ser. No. 308,793 priority, application Germany, Sept. 15, 1962,

Sch 32,038 4 Claims. (CL 101-174) The present invention relates to rotary printing machines and more particularly to rotary machines for the printing on one side of sheets in multi-colour or other printing.

In conventional machines of this type, either each form cylinder has its own impression cylinder or several form cylinders print on the same peripheral part of an impression cylinder common to both. With the first mentioned type of machine the printer, as has hitherto been normal and required, can make ready from a position below the form and from the winding cylinder of the machine. This requirement is still demanded by the trade or technical world in connection with high grade printing. With the other type of machine, which is of simpler construction since it operates with three cylinders only, instead of with four, making ready can be effected frombelow. Form settings from above would result in superposition, since all the form cylinders print at the same peripheral part of the common impression cylinder. The two types of machine differ in respect of the quality of print very considerably from each other, and with high grade printing, form-setting from above also is a necessity.

To surmount this difiiculty, the object of the present invention is to eliminate disadvantages involved in the al- Claims ready known proposals and to render it possible to use cylinder common to both, in such manner that each printing form always executes one printing operation on one only of the printing segments of the common impression cylinder and that such printing segments are treated alternately.

In this manner the construction is not only greatly simplified, but at the same time it is capable of producing quality printing and permits the necessary setting of each of the printing forms to be effected from above.

The plane of printing of each of the two forms of the single impression cylinder is at the same distance from the centre of the form cylinder. In order to allow each form to print only from the rollers associated therewith for applying the ink, known measures are provided to allow the ink-applying rollers to rise by a small amount from the form when passing over the form which they are not associated. Measures for raising the ink applying rollers from the printing form associated therewith are known in another connection. There is therefore no difficulty in making use of the constructional means provided therein for this purpose. In order to ink forms which are difiicult to ink and to print with only one colour, according to a further proposal of the invention, the control mechanism can also be constructed so that the ink applying rollers of both colour systems, which are then working with ink of the same colour always remain in the inking position, whereby the inking of the form which is preferably on the second segment of the form cylinder, is inked by all the ink applying rollers. Even 3,198,112 Patented Aug. 3, 1965 when two forms are printing with the same colour, a picture form and a text form being selected for example, the inking rollers remain constantly in the inking position, whereby each of both forms, the picture form and the text form, may be inked with say 8 ink applying rollers.

The invention also proposes to guide the sheet so that, when it is printed with the first colour, it is removed from the impression cylinder and is transferred to the next segment of the impression cylinder for the application of the second colour. To transfer the sheet to be printed from the first to the second segment of the impression cylinder a drum is preferably used which is fitted with a suitable gripper system and has a diameter which amounts to only half the diameter of the impression cylinder.

It has proved to be particularly advisable to use an impression cylinder, carrying the two printing'segments, having a diameter similar to the form cylinder carrying the form segments.

The sheet to be printed in two colours can be delivered to the impression and to the final delivery apparatus in various ways with the use of known devices.

Further features of the invention and details of the advantages achieved thereby will be apparent from the following description of one embodiment of the invention schematically illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 illustrates the machine with its parts in the positons of reception of a sheet to be printed by the impression cylinder, with some of the ink-applying rollers being already raised.

FIGURE 2 shows the machine with its parts in those positions wherein all the inking rollers are raised, the

-forms being guided past the non-associated ink-applying rollers.

FIGURE 3 shows the machine in a position in which the ink applying rollers are all in their inking position.

The machine operates as follows:

The sheets 1 to be printed are delivered individually or in staggered relationship across a feed table 2 to the feeding device 3 and are correctly aligned by known devices before the grippers 4 of the feed device 3 close. The grippers 4 then pass the sheets to grippers 5 of the impression cylinder 6.

When the impression cylinder 6 rotates forwardly (i.e. in an anticlockwise direction shown by the arrow in FIG- URE 1) its segment 7 coincides with the form 8 of the form cylinder 9 and the first print is made on the sheet. The grippers 5 then contact the grippers 10 of the delivery drum or cylinder 11 Without the latter receiving the printed sheet.

The grippers 5 of the impression cylinder then contact with grippers 12 of the transfer drum or cylinder 13 having a diameter equal to one half of the diameter of the impression cylinder 6, in such manner that the grippers 12 receive the sheet, make a rotation therewith about the axis of the drum 13 and then pass the sheet to the grippers 14 of the impression cylinder 6. When the impression cylinder is further rotated, its segment 15 coincides with form 16 of the form cylinder 9 and produces the second print on the sheet. The sheet is then received by the grippers 10 of the delivery drum 11 and transferred to delivery mechanism 17.

The drum 11, which in the example illustrated has a diameter ratio of 1:2 to the impression cylinder may, if desired, be so constructed as to have a ratio 1:1 with said cylinder. Again, the drum 11 may be completely dispensed with and the sheet passed directly to the delivery mechanism 17 after receiving the second print.

In the illustrated embodiment the inking or applicator rollers 18 to 21 are associated with the form 8 and the applicator rollers 22 to 25 with the form 16 of the form cylinder 9. The reverse, however, may be the case. In

the position shown in FIGURE I, the rollers 18 and 19 are already'completely raised whilst the roller 2th is With the'u se of the machine. for single colour 'print% I ing, for which only one form is necessary, the'control mechanism of the inking rollers is put outof action, the two inking mechanisms are fed with the same colour and the same form is inked by both groups of inkingrollers.

' In the foregoing, the invention has been described with It will be evident, however, that varia- 1 1. A rotary printing machine for the multi-colored relief or other printing of sheets comprising in combination:

(1 a rotary compression cylinder having a first and a .second printing segment each'beingfittedwith its own sheet gripping and tensioning means, 7

I (2) a rotary form cylinder'cooperating with said impression cylinder and'having a first and a second.

form segment, V r (3) feeding means to position a sheet to be printed (5) delivery means fitted with sheet gripping means andcooperating with said impression cylinder, to permanently withdraw said sheet from said impression cylinder,

(6) said feeding means,'said form cylinder, said delivery meansand said transfer means being arranged in theorder named-and in the direction of rotation of and aroundthe periphery .of said impression, cylinder andarranged relatively to each other to cooperatively 'elfect, during two consecutive rotations of said cylinders, the operations of feeding and printing of a sheet by said first form segment, transferring the printed sheet from the first to the second printing segment of said impression cylinder, printing the transferred sheet by the second form segment of said form cylinder, and finally withdrawing the sheet by said delivery means.

2. In a rotary printing machine as claimed in claim I, said transfer means being comprised of a transfer cylinder having adiameter equalto one half of the diameter of said' impression cylinder. I

3. In a rotary printing machine as claimed in claim 1, said form cylinder. having a diameter equal to the diameter of said impression cylinder.

4'. In a printing machine as claimed in claim 1, said delivery means being comprised of a cylinder engaging said impression cylinder and fitted with said sheet gripping and transfer means.

upon'the first printing segment of said impression fitted with gripping means and 0p- I ReferencesCited by thejExaminer N UNITED STATES PATENTS 7 647,151 4/00' North 101174 1,289,860 12/18 Middleditch 10l-185 FOREIGN PATENTS 368,892 12/50 France. 7 EUGENE CAPGZIO, Primary Examiner. 

1. A ROTARY PRINTING MACHINE FOR THE MULTI-COLORED RELIEF OR OTHER PRINTING OF SHEETS COMPRISING IN COMBINATION: (1) A ROTARY COMPRESSION CYLINDER HAVING A FIRST AND A SECOND PRINTING SEGMENT EACH BEING FITTED WITH ITS OWN SHEET GRIPPING AND TENSIONING MEANS, (2) A ROTARY FORM CYLINDER COOPERATING WITH SAID IMPRESSION CYLINDER AND HAVING A FIRST AND A SECOND FORM SEGMENT, (3) FEEDING MEANS TO POSITION A SHEET TO BE PRINTED UPON THE FIRST SEGMENT OF SAID IMPRESSION CYLINDER, (4) TRANSFER MEANS FITTED WITH GRIPPING MEANS AND OPERABLY ENGAGING SAID IMPRESSION CYLINDER, TO REMOVE A SHEET FROM SAID FIRST PRINTING SEGMENT AND TO TRANSFER IT TO THE SECOND PRINTING SEGMENT OF SAID IMPRESSION CYLINDER, AND (5) DELIVERY MEANS FITTED WITH SHEET GRIPPING MEANS AND COOPERATING WITH SAID IMPRESSION CYLINDER TO PERMANENTLY WITHDRAW SAID SHEET FROM SAID IMPRESSION CYLINDER, (6) SAID FEEDING MEANS, SAID FORM CYLINDER, SAID DELIVERY MEANS AND SAID TRANSFER MEANS BEING ARRANGED 